Morning Mysteries
by SakuraBlossom58
Summary: Joker and Batman definitely have a history. Hatred, violence, and plenty of scars. Joker wasn't sure when everything changed; he didn't know how this had started. He'd lost count of how many times he'd awoken in Bruce's arms. Starts up not long after Midnight Meetings leaves off. I would recommend reading that first. A collection of loosely related drabbles.
1. Chapter 1

Joker stared impatiently at the ceiling. Batsy was out tonight, hosting one of his _famous_ Halloween parties. A party which Joker had **not** been invited to. He had absolutely no idea why. After all, Halloween was his specialty! Before Bruce left, he had left _specific_ instructions that he was not allowed to do anything to cause damage, mayhem or chaos tonight. Joker would have just ignored the order and done what he wished, but he'd been promised a present if he behaved. He flicked open his switchblade and stared at his reflection in the metal. Not liking what he found, he threw the knife at the wall opposite the bed he was laying on and watched as it sunk in and quivered from the impact. He grinned. That would take some force to remove. He'd leave it for Brucey to find. Ha ha! He wandered through the house, looking for something to occupy himself with. Eventually, he settled himself in front of the television –for about five minutes, before he stood up and started pacing again.

"There are only **two** things in this world that can keep me _occupied_, and I am denied both of them!" His fingers itched to plant a bomb in a bank somewhere, and his body yearned for his lover's touch. Two arms snaked around him from behind and pulled him against a toned chest. Joker glanced at the clock and frowned in confusion. "It's only eight o _clock_, Brucey. What are you doing _home_ so early?" Bruce held him close and breathed in his scent. "I was bored." Joker was trying to focus on the conversation, but the way Bruce was touching him –just barely holding his hips in place –was driving him mad. "You… left your own party early? Isn't that kinda _rude_?" Bruce smirked at the question, his lips ghosting over Joker's ear. He shivered. "I missed you." The need for words left them as Joker turned in his arms and pressed their mouths together. Clothes were shed and Joker hissed in pleasure as Bruce slid into him. Their pace was fast and desperate, similar to other nights but somehow completely different. Bruce's hand wrapped around Joker's aching member and pumped in time with his thrusts. They climaxed almost simultaneously.

Afterwards they lay together, holding each other tightly and pressing kisses to cooling skin. Bruce stood up after a few moments to get a blanket, and he returned with a puzzled expression. "J, why is there a knife in my wall?"

**So! A sequel to my other series, Midnight Meetings. I had a few requests so I decided to do one. This is probably going to be mostly from Joker's point of view, and I'm going to end every chapter with a question. Read and review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Joker prowled the alleys, searching for a lowlife. Batsy disapproved of his killing 'innocents', so he got his kicks where he could.

Sometimes Joker couldn't stand Bruce's morals. There was no such thing as an innocent human being. Well… that excluded children. One of his best kept secrets was his soft spot for kids under the age of twelve. After that they started getting so obnoxious and demanding.

Not finding a throat to slit in that particular alleyway, he slid silently into another. A bum was huddled against a dumpster to keep out the chill while he slept. Joker briefly considered ending his pathetic life, then decided against it. _Too easy._

He wandered deeper into the dark and he realized which alley he was in. It was in this alley that, nearly a year ago, Joker had found out Batman's true identity. _Bruce Wayne!_ He'd never have guessed it. And oh, what a fun discovery it had been! It had been too easy, honestly, to distract the man with his nimble fingers while the fingers of his other hand pulled off his cowl. He recalled how his Batsy had felt under his hand as he massaged his-

A sound broke him out of his reverie. Joker stood stock still, waiting for the sound to come again. When it did, he followed it to the source –a little girl, curled in a ball and trying to make herself as small as possible. When she heard his footsteps she looked up, then shrieked in fright when she recognized him and curled farther away. He sank to his knees in front of her.

"It's okay sweetheart. I'm not going to hurt you."

When she didn't respond he tried again.

"Are you lost, honey?" The endearment had her looking at him. She nodded silently with tears streaming down her face. He opened his arms and was surprised when she crawled into them. He held her close and stroked her little blond curls.

"What's your name honey?" She mumbled something into his jacket, and he realized she must be cold. He took off his jacket and wrapped her in it, then pulled her back to his chest. "Can you say that a little louder honey?" She was clutching his jacket tightly. "Sara Kingsleyh." He smiled at her. "That's a good girl. Let's see what we can to about getting you home."

XX

He headed to Bruce's penthouse. If anybody could figure out where this little angel lived, it would be Batman. She'd fallen asleep on the way there, and for that he was grateful. He wouldn't have wanted to blindfold her or something, but he couldn't risk Bruce's secret getting out.

Going up the fire escape was a little tedious with a child in his arms, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. He slipped through the bedroom window and walked into the kitchen, where he could smell bacon and hear Bruce humming.

Bruce looked up when he heard Joker's footsteps on the tile, but his smile faltered when he saw the dirty child in his arms. "What happened J?"

Food momentarily forgotten, Bruce came over to study her. No more than seven, she was small and slight. She looked undernourished, but her hair had a healthy shine beneath the mud and snarls. "I found her in an alley. She said she was lost."

Bruce returned to the stove just in time to save the food from burning. "Did she give you a name?"

Joker crossed to the sink and found a washcloth, wetting it with warm water. "Sara Kingsleyh, she said. Do you think you could find her parents?" He began to gently wipe the grime away from her cheeks. Was that… ash on her face? She stirred in his arms and he shushed her.

"I'll give it a shot after supper."

XX

Joker put Sara down in the guest bedroom, making sure to pull the covers up around her and leave the door open a crack. When he went back into the living room, he saw Bruce sitting on the couch with a tumbler of whiskey. He didn't turn from the T.V when Joker sat down next to him, only rested his head on his shoulder and closed his eyes.

"She's an orphan, Joker. Her parents were killed today in a house fire."

Joker tensed. "Was it an accidental fire?"

Bruce rubbed a soothing palm down Joker's back while he took a sip of his drink. "They think it was started by a dropped cigarette."

They sat in silence for what felt like forever. Perhaps it _was_ forever, Joker couldn't tell.

"What do we do with her? She'd never make it in the system."

Joker thoughtfully chewed on his scars. Then his eyes lit up and he looked at Bruce with hope.

"Can we keep her?"

XX

Hey guys. Sorry, haven't had much writing time. BUT… only 8 more weeks of schooooooll! Woo! I'm excited. Hope you liked! If you review, I promise I'll get another chapter out faster than this one came.


	3. Chapter 3

He watched their little angel sleep. She'd come into their care a few nights ago, and she'd done little else. Bruce had called in his doctor, who said that other than suffering from shock and being malnourished, she was in acceptable health.

Joker stayed near her always. When he was too far away, she'd start to toss and turn and cry out in her sleep. On the few occasions that she was awake, he managed to slide some broth down her throat. She welcomed it, and it seemed to make her sleep more soundly.

He left her to go take a shower, at Bruce's insistence. "I'll watch her until you come back, Joker."

He didn't realize until he was in the shower how right Bruce was. He smelled terrible, and felt twice as disgusting. He took his time, making sure to wash off all traces of face paint and hair dye. He stayed in until he felt refreshed enough to deal with life, and then he turned off the water and toweled off before sliding into some fuzzy pajama pants.

He stepped out into her room and stopped in surprise. Sara was sitting up on the bed, talking easily to Bruce. Her eyes were alight with mirth and her smile was so big he swore he could count all of her teeth. Bruce's head turned when he heard his footsteps on the floor, and her gaze followed his.

He was a little worried about her reception, but she gave him a large smile and he took it as an invitation to come sit next to Bruce on the bed. She climbed up into his arms and put her arms around his neck. She smiled again, and he noticed that one of her front teeth was missing. _All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth…_He mentally smacked himself. Now was not the time to be the Joker.

"Thank you for taking care of me, mister. I was so lost! But now I have you!" He couldn't help returning her contagious smile. "Jay." He turned at the gentle prodding of his lover and looked him in the eye. His mouth was grim set, his eyes dark. "She started the fire." He felt his eyes narrow in confusion.

"That's right! Mommy told me that if I didn't stop screaming when she hit me, she'd lock me in my room and burn down the house. Well, Daddy was making Mommy scream, and it was very rude of her to wake me up, so I locked the door of their bedroom and set fire to one of Mommy's suckers!"

Joker's emotions warred within him. The part of him that was most influenced by Brue –the creature with morals –screamed in horror that a child should not be capable of this kind of action. The man in him cried that a child should not be subjected to the abuse and neglect that this child had seen. But the monster in him, the agent of chaos and the part of him that was perhaps the largest part, laughed with amusement.

"Did… Did I not do good? I thought that that was what you were supposed to do when someone was being loud and wouldn't stop?" Her eyes were large, full of tears and uncertainty. Joker sent a frightened look back at Bruce. The kid was asking HIM to be her conscience? Bruce smoothly handled the situation. "Darling, you didn't know. Hurting people is not good, but I know that nobody ever taught you that. You did what _you_ thought was right, and I can't be upset with you for that."

She looked away from Bruce and at Joker.

"What about you, mister? Do you think I did something bad?"

XX

What a loaded question! Good grief, Poor Jay. How does a mass murder answer that question?

Hope you enjoyed!


	4. Chapter 4

_Bruce smoothly handled the situation. "Darling, you didn't know. Hurting people is not good, but I know that nobody ever taught you that. You did what you thought was right, and I can't be upset with you for that."_

_She looked away from Bruce and at Joker. _

"_What about you, mister? Do you think I did something bad?"_

Joker was lost in a wilderness of morals. How do you answer a question like that? On one hand, morals dictated that honesty was the best policy. On the other…

The problem was, joker didn't think she _had _done anything wrong. Perhaps that was just his inner psychopath speaking.

He was saved from forming an answer by Alfred entering the room.  
"Master Bruce, I think you need to see this."

Bruce followed Alfred out into the living room and I continued to regard the blond angel in front of me. "Well, uh… You hurt the people who hurt you. I don't see anything wrong with that."

She smiled and hugged me, and I gave myself an internal pat on the back. _Crisis averted._

"Joker!" Bruce sounded urgent, so I set Sara down and made my way into the living room to see what was the matter.

There was a woman on the television, being interviewed by a reporter. Bruce turned the volume up.

"I don't know where she could be. She doesn't have many friends, and I'm her only living relative. I can't imagine what she must be going through right now, scared and alone on the streets."

The woman started to cry, and the discomfited reporter handed her a tissue.

"I just want my niece back."

Joker turned when he felt something brush against his arm, to find Sara standing by him, staring at the television in terror.

"You're not going to give me to her, are you Jay? Please don't let her take me!"

Bruce pulled the frightened child into his arms. "Did she hurt you too, Sara?" She nodded into his shoulder. Bruce looked up at Joker a little helplessly.

Later that night they sat together on the couch, after having put Sara to sleep.

"We can't keep her, Jay. While she has any remaining family, they have the right to have her back. It's illegal for us to refuse."

Joker was angry at the system, angry at that woman. He was so angry he just wanted to –

Bruce scrutinized Jokers face closely.

"Do you have a plan?"


End file.
